NYTV
Most of our knowledge of places such as New York comes from TV and film. In such an image saturated society, we take for granted that we know what a distant city is like, albeit in the form of easily digestible trademarks.
There is no attempt in these photographs to challenge this view or to offer any fresh or original perspective of New York. They are stereotypes and commonly seen icons of the city received and reproduced in the media. Everything in the images - even the few people that do appear - has been reduced to a sign.
The photographs are like those of a tourist who searches out the landmarks that they have previously seen in magazines, brochures, and on television, then rephotographs them for themselves as proof that they actually exist. Film and television have the dual effect of appearing to be windows onto the 'real' world while at the same time distancing and glamorising it to make it a magical, 'unreal' world.
Hence the feeling of disbelief that I felt when I first arrived in New York; I was actually there, it was real and I wasn't just walking around a movie set. On one level, NYTV can be seen as an experiment to see how far the images I took in New York differ from the ones that have already shaped my view of the city. Could I have just stayed at home and seen the city from my armchair?
Limited edition prints of NYTV are available to buy through Eyestorm.